METAIRIE, La.—New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees will break one of the NFL’s greatest records on Sunday night if he throws a touchdown pass in his 48th consecutive game. That would surpass Johnny Unitas' remarkable achievement, set from 1956-60.

Obviously the timing is bittersweet since it comes when the Saints are 0-4 and don’t have much else to celebrate. But Brees is back on a roll after his stellar performance last week at Green Bay. He threw for 446 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions, and the Saints’ passing attack nearly lifted the team to a huge road victory.

Unfortunately for the Saints, it appears they’ll have to rely on that formula this year, since their defense and running game have struggled so much. But the good news is that their passing game is special enough to win games on its own.

Brees has had several inconsistent performances, and it seemed as if he was forcing a few throws in early games—especially when the team was playing from behind. But he showed at Green Bay how dangerous he still is when he gets into a rhythm. Expect a ton of attempts, a ton of yards and a ton of touchdowns from Brees—along with occasional interceptions.

This feels like a 2008 type of season for him again. That year, he put up 34 touchdown passes, 17 interceptions and a 96.2 passer rating.

The league has granted permission for coach Sean Payton, assistant coach Joe Vitt and general manager Mickey Loomis—all suspended in the Bountygate scandal—to be on hand Sunday night for Brees’ potential record-breaking game against the Chargers. However, they will have to watch the game from a private area and will not be allowed to have contact with the team.

RUNNING-GAME WOES: It’s hard to identify exactly why the running game has been so inefficient. The Saints are ranked 26th in the league with 80.8 rushing yards per game, and that total has been boosted by a handful of big runs. More often, they’re gaining zero, 1 or 2 yards on first-down runs. Second-year pro Mark Ingram, in particular, has been ineffective since he is used almost exclusively as a short-yardage back and as a first- and second-down back in run-heavy formations.

No individual lineman seems to be a consistent problem. The issues range from a missed block here or there—sometimes by the tight ends on the edge—or a missed read by the back. The Saints insist they’re close to breaking out on the ground, but the running game would benefit if the team can start getting ahead early in games and “pass to set up the run”—a formula that worked very well in 2009 and 2011.